The It’s Official: Kayak Fundraiser Breaks World Record

Councilman Seeks Assembly Seat

By Chris Lundy BERKELEY

– Longtime official James Byrnes has put his name in to represent the 9 th District in the state assembly, hoping to bring a new voice to state politics.

Byrnes is a retired facilities director for a school district in Monmouth County. He served on the Berkeley Board of Education and was appointed to the Township Council in 2012. He’s on the board of social services. In the past, he was screened for the 3rd District Congressional seat.

“I’ve always been an Ocean County guy. I went to Ocean County College,” he said.

“I really like what I’m doing in Berkeley,” he said. There are a lot of projects he’s been involved with. For example, he’s been working on the dog park on .9 acres of vacant land on Butler Boulevard. There’s another where the Holly Park residents want a park built on the end of Main Street. These two projects both had roadblocks from the State Department of Environmental Protection. Byrnes said he’s hoping to fight for local municipalities against overbearing state mandates.

Byrnes said he’s going to go before the screening committee (Councilman - See Page 7)

By Bob Vosseller and Chris Lundy

PINE BEACH – Sandra Rinderer received some news - the kayak rally she organized last August world record. broke the Guinness World Record.

The “Paddle For The Bay” took place on August 20, 2022 and involved the most canoes and kayaks in a continuous, one-milelong parade.

“We received the official word,” Rinderer told The Berkeley Times. “The total count of boats was 1,105 and the old record of 329 was held in Poland, but now it is Pine Beach, New Jersey.”

Several of those kayaks had dogs in them (Kayak - See Page 4)